More ID card nonsense

If ID cards are going to save the economy as much money as Bliar is indicating, why are we having to pay for them? Why will they not be paying for themselves? Do you want to pay as much as £90 to join a police state?

Blair defends identity card plan

ID cards are needed to stop the soaring costs of identity theft, Prime Minister Tony Blair has said as plans for a national scheme were reintroduced.
The plan is for cards to be phased in from 2008, and made compulsory later. The Tories will join Lib Dems and some Labour MPs to oppose cards unless it is "conclusively proved" they are needed. Critics say the cost of the scheme has already risen since November, and say Mr Blair has cited ID theft as other reasons have failed to win backing.

Passport costs

The Home Office will not put a figure on the cost of setting up the scheme, saying it is commercially sensitive. But the the scheme will cost an estimated £584m to run every year - a cost of £93 per card, compared with an estimated cost of £85 per card in November. Ministers stress they have not yet decided what fees people would have to pay for the cards.

Go to the No 2 ID website. Link on the right.